ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Eckerd College basketball team fell just one possession short of redeeming its loss earlier in the season to No. 10 Florida Southern College as it fell in a double overtime battle, 104-103, on Wednesday night in the McArthur Center.
With just 10 seconds left in the double-overtime period, FSC junior Kevin Capers drew a foul and sank both free-throw shots to give the Moccasins a one-point edge.
Eckerd (13-10, 5-6 SSC) fell to Florida Southern (21-2, 10-2 SSC) 84-55 in its previous meeting at Jenkins Field House in one of the toughest environments the Tritons have faced all year.
With the win, Florida Southern snapped a two-game losing streak in conference road games. The Moccasins also won in a double-overtime show against the University of Tampa on Jan. 22.
Eckerd held a three-point lead at the half, 44-41, but a 6-0 run for Florida Southern in the opening minutes of the second half tied the game at 49.
Throughout the second half there eight lead changes and six ties as both teams fought for the upper hand. With 2:07 remaining and Eckerd trailing by one, sophomore
Jerrick Stevenson hit a key three-pointer to put the Tritons in the lead, 79-77.
On the next possession, junior Tyler Kelly drew a foul and made both free-throws to tie the game at 79.
With 37 seconds left in play, senior
Josh Snodgrass went to the line and sank one of two to give Eckerd a one-point lead, but Florida Southern's Stephen Battle tied the game again at 80 completing one-of-two free-throw attempts at the 25-second mark.
With the game tied at 80, Eckerd had the final possession. The Tritons let the clock tick down to the final seconds before making a drive for the basket, but a jumper from Snodgrass fell short and sent the game into overtime.
In the first overtime period, sophomore
Ray Darnell sank two crucial free-throws to give Eckerd a 91-89 lead with just 25 seconds remaining, but once again, FSC drew a foul in the final seconds and Capers tied the game at the line.
It seemed the Tritons were pulling away midway through the second overtime as they forced a stop and led by three, 96-93, but Capers came in clutch and scored on two consecutive layups to give Florida Southern a one-point advantage.
The second overtime would feature three more ties and four more lead changes before Capers sank the winning shot from the free-throw line. He scored 12 of his 20 points in both overtime periods combined.
Both teams battled foul trouble as the intensity of the game increased and overtime went on.
E.J. Moody, Bodney and Stevenson fouled out for EC, while Lamar McKnight and Battle fouled out for FSC. There were 53 total fouls.
The Moccasins barely outshot the Tritons from the free-throw line, making 25-of-32 attempts (78 percent). The Tritons were 30-of-40 from the line (75 percent).
Snodgrass led all scorers with a career-high 25 points. Junior
Malcolm Brunner Jr. netted 10 points and grabbed four boards. Senior
Alex Bodney also added 19 points.
The Mocs posted three players with 20 points or more. Senior Frank Adams led FSC with 22 points, Capers tallied 20 points and the senior McKnight added 20 points.
Eckerd will head out on the road against Barry University in Miami Shores on Saturday to play at 4 p.m. EST.
